Strictly congregational, the Christian Union is an attempt to unite all Christians "to promote fellowship among God's people, to put forth every effort to proclaim God's saving grace to the lost ... and to declare the whole counsel of God for the edification of believers."[1]
The Christian Union maintains seven principles: "the oneness of the Church of Christ, Christ as the only head of the church, the Bible as the only rule of faith and practice, good fruits as the one condition of fellowship, Christian union without controversy, complete autonomy for the local church, and avoidance of all partisan political preaching."[2]
Ordinances include baptism by any method, at the choice of the individual, and the Lord's Supper. Inter-church councils meet at various levels for fellowship and to conduct business, plan missions work, etc. Most churches follow a familiar Evangelical, Restorationist pattern with Sunday School, Sunday morning worship services, and mid-week Bible studies.[3]
Front of the Grace Chapel Christian Union Church building, Santa Fe, Ohio.
The Christian Union was organized at the Deshler Hotel in Columbus, Ohio, on February 3, 1864 (though groupings of churches that later joined with the Christian Union point to earlier dates and movements as their origin.)[4] Weary of the legion of issues brought to the forefront during the American Civil War, founder Rev. James Fowler Given, a Methodist Episcopal Church (North) pastor, was put out of the itinerant pulpit ministry because he refused to take political stands supported by the denomination, particularly military force in support of abolition.
Given, who quickly became a martyr for Democrats and those opposed to radical Abolitionism, began a newspaper called The Christian Witness "in the interest of pure religion — Christianity free from all superstition, cant and sectarianism; of good Morals; of sound Education and Knowledge; of Genuine Benevolence; of the Great Principles of American Liberty; and, in short, of whatever may subserve a Noble Manhood, or contribute to Public Happiness and Prosperity."[1] Three main reasons underscored the creation of the Christian Union—all promoted within the pages of the Christian Witness. Aside from opposing the political preaching common during the height of the Civil War, founders also objected to the forbidding of laymen to interpret the Bible or freely practice/participate in the Lord's Supper, baptism, and foot washing. Thirdly, the Christian Union founders resented the heavy-handed control of their former denominations—a common objection found in the Restorationism of the time. Their call was to "build the Father's house anew."
Congregations inspired by Given's example were planted as far north as New England and as far south as Florida and west into Texas and Colorado. Given, Dr. John Van Buren Flack of Illinois,[5] G. W. Mitchell, and Dr. Jerry Clevenger provided leadership in the early growth of the denomination, each of whom were Methodists with either "peace Democrat" tendencies or a disdain for ecclesiastical involvement in political affairs.[6] By 1865, the Christian Union reported 180 churches.[4]
By 1870 there were 48 churches, 4,920 members, and 97 preachers in the Christian Union, and in 1898 there were 149 churches, 7,884 members, 105 preachers. By 1906 the membership figure was 13,905 and 13,692 by 1916. Membership statistics dropped sharply in the following years, with 8,791 in 1926 and 6,124 in 1936. In 1995, the denomination reported 114 churches and 6,000 members, with missions work in Africa, Mexico, Liberia and Columbia, as well as the U.S. state of Alaska. Nigeria is home to an associate council of the church, having joined in 1977.[4][7]
Christian Union operates its School of the Bible, located in Greenfield, Ohio. In 1894, The Christian Union purchased Grand River College, which closed in 1901 due to financial reasons.
A periodical, the Christian Union Witness continues to be published.[8]
Divisions and mergers
There were several attempts at secession in the early history of the Christian Union, many of which were by former Methodists with a goal to introduce a systematic Wesleyan theology and catechism. The largest of these fractures took place within a year of its founding, as the Illinois Christian Union churches voted to join the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, thus becoming the Illinois District of the Southern Methodists.[9]
A merger with the Christian Church movement was discussed in 1868, but never consummated.[10]
Another schism, which resulted in the creation of the Churches of Christ in Christian Union denomination, took place in 1909 when a handful of ministers and about 60 lay people left. They claimed ministers holding to a Wesleyan view on sanctification were being censured. The Holiness movement-oriented Churches of Christ in Christian Union reported it drew away 12 preachers, about 1,000 members, and 20 churches from the parent body, and has grown to around 200 churches by 2014.
↑ "Churches in the Buckeye Country"; A History of Ohio's Religious Groups Published In Commemoration Of The State's Sesquicentennial By The Religious Participation Committee Of The Ohio Sesquicentennial Commission An Inter-Faith Group, 1953
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother Charles Wesley were also significant early leaders in the movement. They were named Methodists for "the methodical way in which they carried out their Christian faith". Methodism originated as a revival movement within the 18th-century Church of England and became a separate denomination after Wesley's death. The movement spread throughout the British Empire, the United States, and beyond because of vigorous missionary work, today claiming approximately 80 million adherents worldwide.
The Holiness movement is a Christian movement that emerged chiefly within 19th-century Methodism, and to a lesser extent other traditions such as Quakerism, Anabaptism, and Restorationism. The movement is historically distinguished by its emphasis on the doctrine of a second work of grace, generally called entire sanctification or Christian perfection and by the belief that the Christian life should be free of sin. For the Holiness Movement "the term 'perfection' signifies completeness of Christian character; its freedom from all sin, and possession of all the graces of the Spirit, complete in kind." A number of evangelical Christian denominations, parachurch organizations, and movements emphasize those beliefs as central doctrine.
Restorationism is the belief that Christianity has been or should be restored along the lines of what is known about the apostolic early church, which restorationists see as the search for a purer and more ancient form of the religion. Fundamentally, "this vision seeks to correct faults or deficiencies by appealing to the primitive church as a normative model."
The Social Brethren is a small body of evangelical Christians located in the Midwestern United States and the Philippines.
The Wesleyan Church, also known as the Wesleyan Methodist Church and Wesleyan Holiness Church depending on the region, is a Methodist Christian denomination in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Indonesia, and Australia. The church is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement and has roots in the teachings of John Wesley. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian doctrine and is a member of the World Methodist Council.
The Primitive Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination with the holiness movement. It began in England in the early 19th century, with the influence of American evangelist Lorenzo Dow (1777–1834).
Christian perfection is the name given to theological concepts within some sects of Christianity that purport to describe a process of achieving spiritual maturity or perfection. The ultimate goal of this process is union with God characterized by pure love of God and other people as well as personal holiness or sanctification. Various terms have been used to describe the concept, such as entire sanctification, perfect love, the baptism with the Holy Spirit, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, baptism by fire, the second blessing, and the second work of grace.
The Churches of Christ in Australia is a Reformed Restorationist denomination. It is affiliated with the Disciples Ecumenical Consultative Council and the World Communion of Reformed Churches.
The Methodist Church of Great Britain is a Protestant Christian denomination in Britain, and the mother church to Methodists worldwide. It participates in the World Methodist Council, and the World Council of Churches among other ecumenical associations.
Pilgrim Holiness Church (PHC) or International Apostolic Holiness Church (IAHC) is a Christian denomination associated with the holiness movement that split from the Methodist Episcopal Church through the efforts of Martin Wells Knapp in 1897. It was first organized in Cincinnati, Ohio, as the International Holiness Union and Prayer League (IHU/IAHC). Knapp, founder of the IAHC, ordained and his Worldwide Missions Board sent Charles and Lettie Cowman who had attended God's Bible School to Japan in December 1900. By the International Apostolic Holiness Churches Foreign Missionary Board and the co-board of the Revivalist the Cowmans had been appointed the General Superintendents and the Kilbournes the vice-General Superintendent for Korea, Japan and China December 29, 1905. The organization later became the Pilgrim Holiness Church in 1922, the majority of which merged with the Wesleyan Methodists in 1968 to form the Wesleyan Church.
The conservative holiness movement is a loosely defined group of theologically conservative Christian denominations with the majority being Methodists whose teachings are rooted in the theology of John Wesley, and a minority being Quakers (Friends) that emphasize the doctrine of George Fox, as well as River Brethren who emerged out of the Radical Pietist revival, and Holiness Restorationists in the tradition of Daniel Sidney Warner. Schisms began to occur in the 19th century and this movement became distinct from parent Holiness bodies in the mid-20th century amid disagreements over modesty in dress, entertainment, and other "old holiness standards" reflective of the related emphases on the Wesleyan–Arminian doctrine of outward holiness or the Quaker teaching on the testimony of simplicity or the River Brethren and Restorationist teachings on nonconformity to the world, depending on the denomination. Christian denominations aligned with the conservative holiness movement share a belief in Christian perfection, though they differ on various doctrines, such as the celebration of the sacraments and observance of ordinances, which is related to the denominational tradition—Methodist, Quaker, Anabaptist or Restorationist. Many denominations identifying with the conservative holiness movement, though not all, are represented in the Interchurch Holiness Convention; while some denominations have full communion with one another, other bodies choose to be isolationist.
Eucharistic theology is a branch of Christian theology which treats doctrines concerning the Holy Eucharist, also commonly known as the Lord's Supper. It exists exclusively in Christianity and related religions, as others generally do not contain a Eucharistic ceremony.
The Churches of Christ in Christian Union (CCCU) is a Wesleyan-Holiness and Restorationist Christian denomination.
Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan–Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the ministry of the 18th-century evangelical reformer brothers John Wesley and Charles Wesley. More broadly it refers to the theological system inferred from the various sermons, theological treatises, letters, journals, diaries, hymns, and other spiritual writings of the Wesleys and their contemporary coadjutors such as John William Fletcher.
The United Church of Christ in the Philippines is a Christian denomination in the Philippines. Established in its present form in Malate, Manila, it resulted from the merger of the Evangelical Church of the Philippines, the Philippine Methodist Church, the Disciples of Christ, the United Evangelical Church and several independent congregations.
Pentecostalism is a renewal movement within Protestant Christianity that places special emphasis on a direct personal relationship with God and experience of God through the baptism with the Holy Spirit. For Christians, this event commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the followers of Jesus Christ, as described in the second chapter of the Book of Acts. Pentecostalism was established in Kerala, India at the start of the 20th century.
The Global Wesleyan Alliance (GWA) is an ecumenical organization of Christian denominations who adhere to Wesleyan-Arminian (Methodist) theology. It was formed in Anderson, Indiana, in 2011.
Criticism of Protestantism covers critiques and questions raised about Protestantism, the Christian denominations which arose out of the Protestant Reformation. While critics may praise some aspects of Protestantism which are not unique to the various forms of Protestantism, Protestantism is faced with criticism mainly from the Catholic Church and mainstream Eastern Orthodox churches, although Protestant denominations have also engaged in self-critique and criticized one another. According to both the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodoxy, many major, foundational Protestant doctrines have been officially declared heretical.
Protestant theology refers to the doctrines held by various Protestant traditions, which share some things in common but differ in others. In general, Protestant theology, as a subset of Christian theology, holds to faith in the Christian Bible, the Holy Trinity, salvation, sanctification, charity, evangelism, and the four last things.
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